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Sempronius

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word Sempronius

Confidence
Unknown
First attested
81–43 BC, Cicero

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [sɛmˈproː.ni.ʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [semˈprɔː.ni.us][1]

Forms

Semprōnius m sg (genitive Semprōniī or Semprōnī); second declension[1]

Etymology

The origin of the name is unclear.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cicero uses it as an adjective in the names of laws, especially those of Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus.[3][4][2]

Semantic evolution

It was the name of a Roman gens, best known through the brothers Tiberius and Gaius Sempronius Gracchus;[3][4] the Gracchi, the Atratini, the Blaesi and the Longi were among its families.[5] Sallust portrays a Sempronia who took part in Catiline's conspiracy.[4][3] As an adjective it named the laws of the Gracchi (lēx Semprōnia, lēgēs Semprōniae) and the horrea Semprōnia, where the public grain was stored under a law of Gaius Gracchus, as Festus reports.[4][6] The derived adjective Semprōniānus is used of a decree of the Senate brought in by a Sempronius and of a defeat suffered by one.[4] It lives on as the Italian name Sempronio.[6]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it in the names of the Sempronian laws.[3][4][2]
  • 86–34 BC – Sallust writes of a Sempronia.[3][2]
  • 2nd half of the 2nd century AD – Festus mentions the horrea Semprōnia.[4][6][2]

Meanings

Proper noun

  1. The name of a Roman gens, to which Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus belonged;[3][4] (feminine) Semprōnia, a woman of this gens.[3][4]

Adjective

  1. Of a Sempronius, Sempronian; especially in the names of laws of the Gracchi: lēx Semprōnia.[3][4][6]
  2. ## horrea Semprōnia: the granaries for the public grain set up under a law of Gaius Gracchus.[4][6]

Word family

  • Semprōniānus

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b c d e Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
Cite this entry

“Sempronius.” Etymologically, 24 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/Sempronius. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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